Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Refrigerator Pie

When I saw the recipe for 10-Minute Lime Cracker Pie posted on Serious Eats, I decided it would be the perfect thing to serve on the Fourth of July. And I was right. A big ol' slab of lime-flavored heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk was just thing to have after indulging in hamburgers and bratwurst. <g> Ok, not really. But a couple of tablespoons of the tangy stuff hit the spot.

The name is a bit of a misnomer. The dish took a little more than 10 minutes to make, maybe 15, and it needs to hang out in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours (or even better, overnight) in order for the crackers to absorb the liquid. But the result is much like key lime pie, but with layers of "crust" within rather than just one on the bottom. So like key lime pie, in fact, that I think this would be much much better if made with plain graham crackers rather than Ritz. The Ritz (we used the low-sodium variety) tasted sorta, well, Ritz-y.

I think an orange or lemon version with chocolate cookies might be fun to try.

Combine milk and heavy cream in a large bowl. Add lime juice and whisk until thickened, about 1 minute. Spread 1 cup filling on bottom of 8" square baking pan. Top with single layer of Ritz crackers. Repeat, alternating layers of filling and crackers until pie plate is full (finish with a layer of filling). Sprinkle with grated lime zest. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to overnight. Serves 8-10.